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Tonight was a stellar night for me and Akiniwazi. Both creatively and healthwise.

As most will know, I am not in the greatest of health, due to a shattered elbow and long term weight problems. It had left me very sedentary, for too long, and I’m now trying to reverse that trend. The problem is that I never could seem to get my butt out the door. Nothing motivated me enough. Well, tonight, that changed.

For most of my youth, I used to walk a lot. Miles and miles. A mile walk or bikeride to school. Plus, I was a paperboy and had to walk my route. I did not have many friends, so I entertained myself by telling myself stories and working on RPGs I was playing or running. But occasionally, a friend would accompany me and we’d talk for hours while we walked. I miss it and it’s a habit I sorely miss today.

Combine this with me struggling with a touch of agoraphobia and hating to be out in public for various reasons, and my physical issues, my situation got worse and worse.

So what changed?

Tonight I got someone to talk to, and was able to unburden myself with all the book secrets and long term plotline of Akiniwazi. I mean they got EVERYTHING. “Inside Baseball” level of info dumpage. But I noticed as I talked, I was pacing in my apartment constantly, so I said:

“Self, Get your pants and shoes on and start walking and see what happens.” So out the door I went and started walking around my complex. At least it was evening so it’s not like I burst into flame from the sun. Ick, sun.

The reason I needed to talk like this is I have been struggling with how to finish the beginning hook. I had the pieces sitting there in front of me, mocking me because I didn’t know how to put them together. I did not want to mirror what happened in the previous book, and I sure wanted it to be exciting. So, after all the big plot expose was done, and I left my collaborator in shock, I broke it back down to this one little piece of the picture and started trying to talk it out, because that’s how my creative process works best. It was like putting a can of “Sea Foam” engine cleaner into a 40 year old engine! It blew out so much black smoke and noise but in a few minutes of running it, the storyline became clear again!

And boy did it have a few logical twists I never expected too! What really made me the most happy is that I was walking and never noticed my back. See, sitting for work so much as both a commercial driver and now a desk jockey, my back, butt and thigh muscles have atrophied a lot, and walking hurts. I had to stop every once in a while, but long story short, I’m fairly certain I walked about 2 miles tonight for the first time in about a decade! That unto itself is cause for celebration for me.

Plus I cleared out a huge narrative problem that will leave the beginning hook’s resolution a lot cleaner, logical and tragic all in one swell foop! I still don’t know what I’m going to do to top it for the climax… well not true, but I don’t quite know in what form that climax is going to take. Once again, the middle build conclusion might be more dramatic as it currently stands. I dunno. See, this is the problem with the complexity of this book and what it will launch coming up. Book 3 is going to have to get fatter still… and I love it.

Not because I couldn’t make the time due to work or life, but because mentally I was not there. The story was not jelling. Pieces were missing that were critical to make things go together. For me, plausibility and motivation are big. If they do not work in my head, I know they won’t work for the reader.

So I’ve been thrashing about.

Not to mention I’m still stressing about book sales and getting ready for the print release of book one (Yes that’s still happening soon) and just all the other stuff in life. It’s been overwhelming to my brainal like substances.

With that being said, last week has been quietly good. I’ve done a lot of research on medieval life and culture. It has had lots of points that are transferable to my setting. I have also gotten some good feedback from a reader or two, so that’s a plus out there too. My head likes maps and seeing the location of things as well as understanding some of the subtleties of a culture. A single piece of information that came was just sort of a toss off on one bit of research became critical for me. That piece of information? In the middle ages, people believed insanity was contagious!

Ta Da! Tons of problems solved. Don’t get me started about balancing the humors. I still don’t quite get that and am grateful for divine healing in the setting. Just ick. Even the word “Black Bile” does me no favors.

So now, I’m on the verge of the surge in writing. I just have to clear my space of distractions… (see you later Guild Wars 2)… and focus on putting out more content. It has been helpful to talk things out with a few people too. Simple things even like tonight. I mentioned my struggle about the setting of the village of Kynligrspiejl and one word helped push me past it all, and that word was ‘artisan’. And that was the term that helped me bootstrap into what I need to fix so I can start another plot line that is required to weave into this tapestry I’m making. Where ALRDW was more of a thin braid, this is a tapestry. Very big and audacious. Many themes that will set up the rest of the books will be started and enriched.

I’m looking forward to that, but it’s making my life a bit crazy because it’s been like dragging a boulder behind me. I wonder if I’ll have to do a fast again?

ANYWAY!… move we shall.

Hopefully more reviews come up soon. I like hearing what you have to say.

So time for sleep, then awake, get the chores out of the way so I can sit down and write again with a clear mind.